Category: aesthetics

Remix Theory: The Aesthetics of Sampling is an analysis of Remix in art, music, and new media. Navas argues that Remix, as a form of discourse, affects culture in ways that go beyond the basic recombination of material. His investigation locates the roots of Remix in early forms of mechanical reproduction, in seven stages, beginning in the nineteenth century with the development of the photo camera and the phonograph, leading to contemporary Remix culture. This book places particular emphasis on the rise of Remix in music during the 1970s and ’80s in relation to art and media at the beginning of the twenty-first Century. Navas argues that Remix is a type of binder, a cultural glue — a virus — that informs and supports contemporary culture. Continue reading

Neuroplanets is an audio project which explores the aesthetics of information on sound. Initially, I worked in commissioned tracks from other artists, by transmitting on them sound analysis results from extremely rare sonic phenomena in other planets. After that, I manipulated these tracks by applying on them numerical/quantitative data and statistical elements from Neurosciences research in serious diseases. My aim was to ‘visualize’ on sound the diseases characteristics and impact on human nature. Continue reading

Paweł Janicki (1974) is an independent media artist and producer working in the field of media art, microsound aesthetics and algorithmic composition, is a creator of audiovisual interactive systems, installations and performances. He creates and continuously develops software tools and interfaces. Special place in his activity takes developing software according to his own projects – and broadly – creating his own media either sabotaging already existing solutions. Continue reading

The latest of edition of Vague Terrain is dedicated to celebrating the tenth anniversary of the .microsound community. Guest curated by the American composer Kim Cascone, the issue provides a range of commentary and context on “sub-atomic” musical aesthetics and a window into this globally distributed community of electronic musicians. In Cascone’s own words .microsound is a fertile middle ground between “the ivory tower of sterile academia” and “the seizure-inducing din of the dance club”. For those unacquainted with this zone of musical production, this collection of work provides a perfect introduction. Continue reading

Born in Krakow, Poland, in 1958, Zbigniew Karkowski is one of the most significant artists working in the field of experimental and contemporary music. For the first time in Berlin, he will give a workshop for sound artists, musicians or composers who are interested in his approach to composition and live performance on both the technical and formal level. This workshop gives the participants an opportunity to gain insight into the working methods of one of the most challenging composers / performers of electronic music today. Continue reading

Networked: a (networked_book) about (networked_art)INVITES YOU TO PARTICIPATE: Two years in the making, Networked: a (networked_book) about (networked_art) is now open for comments, revisions, and translations. You may also submit a chapter for consideration.

‘The Piano Etudes Project’ A Space for Play — Review by Les Loncharich, furtherfield.org: The Piano Etudes project by Jason Freeman, with Akito Van Troyer and Jenny Lin, is a move towards opening the forbidden city of musical composition. The project is based on piano etudes, musical compositions in which the pianist can rearrange connections between some open form pieces. Site visitors are invited to create their own etudes from four short compositions by Jason Freeman. Each etude is transcribed graphically into something that resembles an organizational chart. Each visual component of the chart has a corresponding audio note pattern. The pitch of a note pattern is roughly indicated by the height of a horizontal bar that is part of the graphic. A site user can select graphic elements and arrange them on a time-line to hear the resulting sound piece. Pieces created on the site can be saved and transcribed into musical notation so that pianists can perform pieces created by site visitors. More >>

Tone and Temperament is a group-exhibition that considers the temporal and expandable material of sound. Curated by Sophie Landres and in collaboration with the eight participating artists, this exhibition concentrates on sound as a condition for personal, social, political and metaphysical experience. In addition to the permanent fixtures in the gallery, performances will be scheduled to occur throughout the duration of the exhibition.

Tone and Temperament was conceived as an opportunity to explore literal and conceptual ideas of harmony versus discordance and innocence versus criminality that subsist within the framework of conflicting social norms and art historical precedents. Continue reading